Defence cuts row eclipses PM’s tour of North Africa

Downing Street was today forced to admit that there may be further defence cuts in 2015/16 after confusion over an apparent pledge by David Cameron to protect spending following the general election.

The row overshadowed the Prime Minister’s tour of North Africa today, at a time Tory MPs are worried about the extra burdens on the armed forces from the conflicts in Mali and potentially Syria.

Defence Secretary Philip Hammond predicted “a robust discussion” over the coming months, which is Whitehall code for a blood-on-the-walls row.

Widespread media reports today said Mr Cameron had dropped a big hint that the defence budget will be protected from further cuts in this year’s mini spending review. However, the Treasury this morning lost no time in making clear that the alleged promise only applied to equipment spending, and not the full £33 billion defence budget.

Mr Hammond was unable to confirm there was any of the reported commitments to above-inflation budget rises or to maintain spending in real-terms. “I have a firm commitment that the equipment plan, which is a very large part of the defence budget, will rise in real terms by one per cent a year between 2015 and 2020,” said Mr Hammond on BBC radio.

The MoD budget has already been slashed by eight per cent in real terms since 2010 and many Tory MPs say enough is enough. Senior backbencher Mark Pritchard said: “This needs to be clarified. Additional defence cuts, even by stealth, will not be tolerated by the majority of Tory MPs.”

The issue has been cast into sharper relief by the Government’s commitment of up to 330 personnel and air support to the campaign against rebels in Mali, where French forces today secured the northern town of Kidal, the last main stronghold of Islamist militants.

The confusion took the shine off the MOD’s announcement today of £160 billion of defence equipment spending over 10 years. Equipment spending makes up 35 to 40 per cent of the MoD budget. It started when a No 10 source was asked if the PM stood by comments made in October 2010, when he expressed a “strong view” that defence spending should start rising again from 2015 onwards. The source said Mr Cameron “does not resile” from those comments.

There is concern at the Treasury that if defence spending is ringfenced along with schools, NHS and aid money other departments, including the police, would have to be cut even deeper.

Downing Street backed away from a row with the Treasury by clarifying that Mr Cameron’s previous statement referred to the years beyond the 2016-17 financial year, and not 2015-16.

Moreover it was his “strong view” rather than a pledge. The PM’s spokesman said: “As his remarks at the time made clear, in the years beyond 2015 means starting in 2016. To suggest otherwise would be quite wrong. As to the spending review announced by the Chancellor in the 2012 Autumn Statement, we are not going to pre-empt its decisions which will be announced in the first half of this year.”